Research
An efficient, effective, and safe U.S. and global payment and settlement system is vital to the U.S. economy. One way the Federal Reserve System can help promote payments system safety and soundness is by providing reliable quantitative information and research about technological innovations and other developments in the payments landscape.
For the most recent research, visit the Payment Research (Off-Site) page on the Board of Governors website.
2026 Research
Supplement to Key Findings From the Annual Federal Reserve Financial Services (FRFS) Financial Institution Risk Officer Survey (2024) (PDF)
This supplement extends the 2024 Risk Officer Survey Key Findings by providing detailed segment analysis of fraud and scam experiences across different financial institution types and asset sizes. It offers enhanced visualizations of previously published FraudClassifier℠ model data while introducing new insights from the ScamClassifier℠ model.
2025 Research
Findings from Federal Reserve Payments Insights Brief: Consumer Payments Study (Off-site, PDF)
U.S. consumers want fast, convenient payment methods, and younger generations are adopting nonbank providers to meet their expectations. A new study from Federal Reserve Financial Services found that 78% of consumers chose faster payments as a preferred option — and half held balances at nonbank providers. Instant payments specifically have caught the attention of consumers, and they are looking to financial institutions to provide them. Around 6 in 10 consumers state that it’s important for their financial institution to offer instant payments, with 78% of Gen Z in particular calling it important, a 14% increase year over year. These are some of the key findings from a survey of U.S. consumers conducted in 2024 and published in 2025 by Federal Reserve Financial Services.
2025 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
The 2025 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice revealed that amid increasing digitalization of payments, U.S. consumers continue to use cash and keep it handy. The overall number of payments consumers made increased in 2024 compared to the previous year, continuing an upward trend that began in 2021. This growth was driven by increases in credit card usage, remote payments, and payments made with mobile devices. Amid this changing landscape, cash use remained stable. In 2024, U.S. consumers made an average of seven payments per month with cash, a number that has remained unchanged since 2020. Additionally, cash was the third-most-used payment instrument after credit and debit cards in 2024, a position it has held for the past five years. The study also revealed additional demographic trends in payments.
Findings from Federal Reserve Payments Insights Brief: Business Payments Study (Off-site, PDF)
U.S. businesses are using instant payments to solve common payment pain points and improve customer and employee experiences. Our survey reveals that most businesses (66%) said they were likely to use instant payments if offered by their primary financial institution, and businesses using instant payments reported 10% greater satisfaction with their primary financial institution than businesses that do not. Businesses identified a number of priority use cases that would benefit from instant payments including digital wallet funding (38%), payroll (35%), recurring bills and invoices (34%), “just-in-time” B2B payments (29%) and more. These are some of the key findings from a survey of U.S. businesses conducted in 2024 and published in 2025 by Federal Reserve Financial Services.
2024 Research
Key Findings From the Annual Federal Reserve Financial Services (FRFS) Financial Institution Risk Officer Survey (2024) (PDF)
In 2024, FRFS surveyed more than 360 financial institutions to shed light on the evolving payment system risk challenges they encounter. The Key Findings From the 2024 Federal Reserve Financial Services Survey of Risk Officers reveals the significant impact of fraud and the shifting nature of check fraud. It also includes a summary of industry trends using the FraudClassifier model.
Federal Reserve Releases New Data on Card Payments and Alt Payments Methods
The Federal Reserve has released detailed data about card payments and alternative payment methods by consumers and businesses in the United States for 2021 and 2022.
The following information is now available on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors' website: Federal Reserve Payments Study: Cards and Alternative Payments — Value and Number (Off-Site).
The release includes new information about credit card, non-prepaid debit card, and prepaid debit card payments as well as alternative payment methods and systems in the calendar years 2021 and 2022.
Highlights include:
- From 2021 to 2022, general-purpose card payments grew 6.0 percent by number and 10.5 percent by value, in line with the growth trajectory from 2018 to 2021.
- Growth in remote payments slowed and was broadly in line with all general-purpose card payments growth from 2021 to 2022.
- In 2022, in-person payments were 63.8 percent of total general-purpose card payments by number. Of those, 87.5 percent involved the use of a chip.
- Cross-border payments with US-issued cards reached 7.5 billion and $0.47 trillion in 2022, compared to 1.4 billion and $0.14 trillion in 2018.
- Mobile wallet payments continued to exhibit strong growth, reaching 14.4 billion payments (up from 2.9 billion in 2018).
- Person-to-person and money transfer payments similarly continued to exhibit strong growth, reaching 9.5 billion in 2022, up from 1.6 billion in 2018.
See the Federal Reserve Payments Study website (Off-Site) for additional information about the study and to download data.
2024 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
The 2024 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice revealed consumers made more payments in 2023 than in previous years, continuing the trend of rising payment transactions since 2020. The findings show amid increased payments, cash’s share decreased in favor of credit and debit cards, but overall cash use has remained stable as consumers continued to hold more cash than they did before 2020 as both a store-of-value (up 53%) and in their pockets, purses or wallets as a backup payment instrument (up 23%). These are some of the prominent findings from the most recent consumer survey conducted by Federal Reserve Financial Services.
Findings from Faster Payments Survey of U.S. Consumers (Off-site) (PDF)
U.S. consumers are increasingly opting for the speed, flexibility and 24x7x365 convenience of digital and faster payment options to pay for goods and services in person and online, pay friends and family, and transfer money between accounts. Our survey reveals that U.S. consumers’ use of digital wallets, such as those popularized by non-bank technology or fintech providers, surged 32% in 2023 from the prior year. Consistent with the 2022 survey, about three-quarters of consumers (74%) used a faster payment service in the past 12 months and 57% expect to use faster payment options more extensively in the future. These are some of the key findings from the most recent consumer survey conducted by Federal Reserve Financial Services.
Findings from Faster Payments Survey of U.S. Businesses (Off-site) (PDF)
U.S. businesses are rapidly adopting digital, faster and instant payment services to improve customer experience and engagement, as well as their own efficiency. In 2023, use of digital wallets, many leveraging embedded payment platforms, grew 31% year over year to 62%, driven by large businesses and the service industry. Additionally, 86% of businesses said they used faster or instant payments in the past 12 months, and 74% reported looking to their financial institution to provide these services. These are some of the key findings from the most recent business survey conducted by Federal Reserve Financial Services.
2023 Research
Key Findings from the annual Federal Reserve Financial Services Financial Institution Risk Officer Survey (2023) (PDF)
FRFS provides a number of tools to support institutions in supplementing their internal tools to further help identify and/or mitigate payments risk. This annual survey was conducted by FRFS, a collaboration of the twelve Federal Reserve Banks, and went to senior risk experts at institutions using FRFS services. FRFS provides payment services to financial institutions, such as cash, check, ACH, funds transfer and instant payments. The survey findings reveal that in 2023, like 2022, external fraud remained the top operational risk. Survey responders cited concerns with increased fraud with check, card and non-bank apps, as well as increasing mule activity. These are two of the key findings from this 2023 survey. Read the report to learn more details about the survey results.
2023 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
The 2023 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice finds that 2020’s shift away from cash and toward credit card payments has continued. Consumers continued to reach for credit cards at a higher rate in 2022. Their use of on-line payments also remained elevated as compared to pre-pandemic payment habits. By contrast, consumer use of debit cards and cash held steady at 2020 levels. These are some of the prominent findings from the 2023 consumer survey conducted by Federal Reserve Financial Services.
2022 Research
2022 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
The 2022 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice finds that the COVID-19 pandemic has continued to affect the way U.S. consumers use and hold cash. The share of payments made in cash dropped sharply from 2019 to 2020 and then increased slightly in 2021, implying that cash use hit its lowest point in the first pandemic year. In contrast to cash use, consumers’ cash holdings remained elevated in 2021 when compared to 2019 and prior years, indicating that consumers continued to demand cash in the uncertain environment of the pandemic’s second year. These are some of the prominent findings from the most recent consumer survey conducted by Federal Reserve Financial Services.
Key Findings from the annual Federal Reserve Financial Services Financial Institution Risk Officer Survey (2022) (PDF)
FRFS provides a number of tools to support institutions in supplementing their internal tools to further help identify and/or mitigate payments risk. This annual survey was conducted by FRFS, a collaboration of the twelve Federal Reserve Banks, and went to senior risk experts at institutions using FRFS services. FRFS provides payment services to financial institutions, such as cash, check, ACH, funds transfer and instant payments. In 2022, external fraud risk emerged as a key concern rising above cybersecurity, which the survey identified as the top operational risk in 2021. Institutions also reported external business and political environments as significant risk factors. Detailed questions associated with the FraudClassifer℠ Model were also included for the first time to help institutions classify drivers of fraud more consistently across payment types and across institutions to track trends over time.
Federal Reserve releases data on noncash payments in 2021
The Federal Reserve Payments Study has released data about noncash payments in the United States for 2021.
The report and data will be available on the web pages of the Federal Reserve Payments Study (FRPS) (Off-site).
The 2022 Initial Data Release includes new information about core noncash payments: cards, ACH, and check payments as well as ATM cash withdrawals in calendar year 2021.
- The value of core noncash payments in the United States grew faster from 2018 to 2021 than in any previous FRPS measurement period since 2000.
- The increase in the value of ACH transfers accounted for more than 90 percent of the rise in noncash payments value from 2018 to 2021.
- The average value of check payments increased substantially to $2,430 in 2021.
- The value of card payments grew faster from 2018 to 2021 than in any previous FRPS measurement period.
- The number of core noncash payments grew by more from 2018 to 2021 than in any previous FRPS measurement period since 2000.
- The increase in the number of card payments accounted for more than 84 percent of the growth in the number of noncash payments from 2018 to 2021.
- The number of non-prepaid debit card payments increased most of all card types.
- The number of ATM cash withdrawals dropped substantially from 2018 to 2021.
Go to the Federal Reserve’s website (Off-site) to learn detail about these findings and download data.
Check Relevance Sustains Issues Facing the Industry
This paper is intended for informational and educational purposes only, and the views expressed herein are solely those of the authors and does not reflect those of The Clearing House Payments Company LLC, which operates ECCHO, the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, any other Reserve Bank, or the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
Payment industry leaders and professionals, regardless of segment or service focus, have a broad strategic interest in ensuring the overall and ongoing efficiency, safety, and soundness of the payments system across all payment types, including check, even as these volumes decline. Importantly, check continues into its fourth century and is expected to remain relevant to U.S. commerce for years to come. Despite continuing predictions of demise, check payments persist as they have attributes users find beneficial in certain use cases, such as medical/insurance payments and reimbursements, collect on delivery (COD) scenarios, certain payments to schools and small businesses, charitable contributions, and others.
May 2022
2021 Research
2021 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
U.S. consumers made fewer payments, specifically fewer small-value payments in 2020 compared to 2019. Additionally, while in-person payment dropped by 19% compared to the 2019 Diary, total spending for not-in-person, non-bill payments increased substantially at grocery stores, dining establishments, and general merchandise locations. The total value of not-in-person spending also doubled in 2020. These are some of the prominent findings from the most recent consumer survey conducted by the Federal Reserve System’s Cash Product Office (CPO) and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
Consumer Payments and the COVID-19 Pandemic: Findings from the April 2021 Supplemental Survey
Consumers continue to hold more store of value cash in their home, car, or elsewhere than compared to pre-pandemic levels. Additionally, consistent with the findings in the April and August 2020 supplemental surveys, fewer consumers are making in-person payments compared to pre-pandemic levels. The share of individuals making in-person payments and using cash in April 2021 declined slightly to about 60 percent, down 15 percentage points from August 2020. These are some of the prominent findings from the most recent consumer survey conducted by the Federal Reserve System’s Cash Product Office (CPO) and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
Consumer Payments and the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Second Supplement to the 2020 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
A majority of U.S. consumers continued to increase the amount of cash they are carrying and/or storing, while nearly 80% of respondents who made in-person purchases did not indicate that they were avoiding or averse to using cash during the COVID-19 pandemic. These are two prominent findings from the most recent consumer survey conducted by the Federal Reserve System’s Cash Product Office (CPO) and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
Key Findings from the annual Federal Reserve Financial Services Financial Institution Risk Officer Survey (2021) (PDF)
FRFS provides a number of tools to support institutions in supplementing their internal tools to further help identify and/or mitigate payments risk. This annual survey was conducted by FRFS, a collaboration of the twelve Federal Reserve Banks, and went to senior risk experts at institutions using FRFS services. FRFS provides payment services to financial institutions, such as cash, check, ACH, funds transfer and instant payments.
2020 Research
2020 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
In its sixth iteration, the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice data show that U.S. consumers used cash for 26% of all payments, and that it is used for nearly 47% of payments under $10.
Consumer Payments and the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Supplement to the 2020 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
In the 2020 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice, data from October 2019 show that U.S. consumers used cash for 26 percent of all payments, and that it is used for nearly 47 percent of payments under $10. To gain an understanding of how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting U.S. consumers’ payment choices, the Federal Reserve conducted a supplemental Diary survey from April to May 2020, which provides initial insight into how payment behavior is evolving in the midst of the crisis.
Developments in Noncash Payments for 2019 and 2020: Findings from the Federal Reserve Payments Study
The Federal Reserve Payments Study (FRPS) collects data to document trends and developments in U.S. payments. This brief is the first report since the detailed release of 2018 data. It provides new findings for 2019 and 2020, the latter year reflecting effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic, on payments processed over general-purpose credit and debit card networks, including non-prepaid and prepaid debit card networks; the automated clearinghouse (ACH) transfer system; and the check clearing system.
Key Findings:
- While data from 2019 largely shows a continuation of past payment trends, with card and ACH both gaining share at the expense of check, payment behavior changed sharply in 2020 with the COVID-19 pandemic, with ACH gaining substantially as a share of noncash payments by both number and value.
- The share estimates combined with other information imply that ACH was the only one of the three core payment systems to grow by number in 2020.
- The total number of card payments declined in 2020, driven by a marked decline of in-person card payments. This was the first annual decline in the number of card payments recorded by the FRPS.
- As in-person card payments dropped in spring 2020, remote card payments took up much of the slack; later in the year, in-person card payments recovered somewhat.
- The pandemic may have helped to spur growth of innovative payment methods, such as in-person contactless card, digital wallet, and P2P payments.
- First-time use of bank-sponsored P2P payments spiked in the second quarter of 2020, a time of business closures and stay-at-home orders.
- First-time use of digital wallets was highest in the third quarter, when some restrictions on in-person shopping were lifted. When used with a mobile device, a digital wallet provides a low-touch option for in-person card payments.
December 2021
For the full report, including charts and data tables, visit the Payment Research (Off-Site) page on the Board of Governors website.
2019 Research
2019 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
In its fifth iteration, the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice data show that U.S. consumers continue to use cash extensively for small-value purchases, representing nearly half of all payments under $10 and 42 percent of payments less than $25. However, consumers’ use of other payment options, including debit and credit cards, is growing.
Cash Me If You Can: The Impacts of Cashless Businesses on Retailers, Consumers and Cash Use
Cashless coffee shops, restaurants, and convenience stores have popped up across the country. It is not illegal to refuse cash as a form of payment in most states and cities in the U.S., and going cashless helps these businesses eliminate the costs of handling and transporting cash. But do these savings come at the cost of financial inclusion? This paper explores the impacts of businesses going cashless.
The 2019 Federal Reserve Payments Study Detailed Data Release
The Federal Reserve Board has published detailed noncash payments data from the 2019 Federal Reserve Payments Study (FRPS). The additional data, estimated from surveys covering 2012 through 2018, supplements the noncash payments overview provided by the top-line data released in December 2019.
The FRPS Detailed Data Release includes new information about core noncash payments and some evolving areas of payments in the United States:
- The estimated number and value of checks for 2018 are revised to 14.0 billion and $26.8 trillion, respectively. As a result, the estimated decline in the number of checks from 2015 to 2018 is revised to 8.2 percent per year, steeper than the previously reported 7.2 percent per year decline. The estimated decline in the value of checks is revised to 2.8 percent per year, less steep than the previously reported 4.0 percent per year decline.
- Use of alternative payment methods and services continues to grow. For example, according to estimates from processors, the number of payments via person-to-person and money transfer services more than doubled from 2015 to 2018.
- Wire transfers originated by consumers grew at double-digit rates by both number and value from 2012 through 2018.
October 2020
For the full report, including charts and data tables, visit the Payment Research (Off-Site) page on the Board of Governors website.
2019 Federal Reserve Payments Study
The 2019 Federal Reserve Payments Study (2019 study) is the seventh in a series of triennial studies conducted by the Federal Reserve System since 2001 to estimate aggregate trends in noncash payments in the United States.
Key findings:
- The number of ACH credit and debit transfers grew by 6.0 percent per year between 2015 and 2018, exceeding the 4.9 percent per-year growth rate recorded for 2012 to 2015.
- Debit and credit card payments grew at an accelerated rate of 8.9 percent per year between 2015 and 2018, up from the 6.8 percent yearly rate of increase from 2012 to 2015.
- For general-purpose cards overall, the value of remote payments in 2018 nearly equaled that of in-person payments.
- More than half of in-person general-purpose card payments were chip authenticated, up from 2.0 percent in 2015.
- Payments made by check fell 7.2 percent per year from 2015 to 2018.
December 2019
For the full report, including charts and data tables, visit the Payment Research (Off-Site) page on the Board of Governors website.
2018 Research
2018 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
This paper explores how often U.S. consumers spent and held cash during the 2017 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice survey. Data from 2017 show that cash continues to be the most frequently used payment instrument, representing 30 percent of all transactions and 55 percent of transactions under $10.
Federal Reserve Payments Study 2018 Annual Supplement
This Federal Reserve Payments Study (FRPS) brief updates data on core noncash payment types and systems that support everyday payments by U.S. consumers and businesses.
Among the important findings:
- Card payments continued to show robust growth from 2016 to 2017, collectively increasing 10.1 percent by number and 8.4 percent by value.
- Remote payments continued to grow as a share of total general-purpose card payments.
- Chip-authenticated payments accounted for more than half of the value of in-person general-purpose card payments in 2017.
- Network automated clearinghouse (ACH) payments exhibited accelerating growth, increasing 5.7 percent by number and 6.9 percent by value from 2016 to 2017.
- Large-institution check payments showed an accelerated decline of 4.8 percent by number from 2016 to 2017.
December 2018
For the full report, including charts and data tables, visit the Payment Research (Off-Site) page on the Board of Governors website.
2017 Research
Cash Holdings: A New View on Cash
As new payments and technologies continue to emerge, cash retains a strong hold among U.S. consumers. This paper explores how often U.S. consumers held and spent cash during the 2015 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice survey, and it provides an analysis on consumers’ cash holding behavior.
Understanding Consumer Cash Use: Preliminary Findings from the 2016 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
Data from the Federal Reserve’s Diary of Consumer Payment Choice shows that cash remains the most used payment instrument in 2016 accounting for 31 percent of all consumer transactions. This study provides a unique view into consumer shopping and payment decisions, including their use of cash.
Changes in U.S. Payments Fraud from 2012 to 2016: Evidence from the Federal Reserve Payments Study
This report details the cost and number of fraudulent payments in the U.S.
Among the important findings:
- Noncash payments fraud (comprised of card, ACH, and check fraud) rose to $8.34 billion in 2015.
- Generally payments fraud was a small fraction of the value of all payments, less than fifty cents per $10,000 in noncash payments in 2012 and 2015.
- As a percentage share of all payments by both dollar value and number of payments, however, payments fraud is increasing.
- Also in 2012 and 2015, most payments fraud is by card.
- From 2015 to 2016, in-person card fraud declined and remote card fraud increased.
October 2018
For the full report, including charts and data tables, visit the Payment Research (Off-Site) page on the Board of Governors website.
Federal Reserve Payments Study 2017 Annual Supplement
After the completion of the most recent triennial Study in 2016, a smaller and more targeted data collection effort was established to produce annual trending information. This initial data release contains the results of the inaugural Federal Reserve Payments Study 2017 Annual Supplement. Results presented in this report are based on survey data gathered from depository and financial institutions, general-purpose card networks and processors, and issuers of various private-label payment instruments. The 2017 Supplement collected the number and value of payments that were initiated in calendar year 2016 from consumer and business accounts domiciled in the U.S. Moving forward, annual supplements are planned for each intervening year between triennial study releases. While these annual supplements will not be as comprehensive as the triennial Study, they should smooth the top-line trending information and provide more current information between the triennial Study release years.
December 2017
2016 Research
Shopping Experience Trends and their Impact on Cash
The way consumers shop today is much different than ten years ago, largely due to the proliferation of new technologies like smartphones and tablets. Today’s new methods of shopping often blur the line between “in-person” and “online” purchases and influence how consumers choose to pay for their purchases. This paper identifies five themes that describe today’s shopping experience and how this new experience may impact cash’s position in the payment landscape.
The State of Cash: Preliminary Findings from the 2015 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
As the payments landscape continues to evolve, cash remains a resilient payment instrument. The Diary of Consumer Payment Choice is one of the Federal Reserve’s primary data sources on consumer payments, and insights from the Diary provide an outlook on how U.S. consumers use cash compared to other payment instruments. When first conducted in 2012, Diary results showed that cash was the most frequently used payment instrument and its use was prevalent across all demographic groups. This paper focuses on findings and insights from the 2015 Diary and how they compare to the earlier research.
2016 Federal Reserve Payments Study
The 2016 Federal Reserve Payments Study is the sixth in a series of triennial studies conducted by the Federal Reserve System to determine the aggregate volume and composition of electronic and check payments in the United States. This study provides the public and the payments industry with estimates and trend information about the evolving nature of the nation’s payments system. The study requested full-year 2015 payments data for various payment types from respondents to two of the three survey components; the third component involves a random sampling of checks processed in 2015 to determine distribution of party, counterparty and purpose. As with the 2013 Study, the 2016 Study was further expanded to survey and estimate additional activities related to payment volumes that may help the industry and the public better understand payments system trends.
June 2017
December 2016
Note: Results contained in the December 2016 and June 2017 data release reports and data tables for the 2016 Federal Reserve Payments Study have been updated as of December 21, 2017, to reflect revised estimates.
2015 Research
Who Holds Cash? Evidence from the 2012 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
In an evolving payments landscape where card use continues to grow and occasionally cash is not a payment option, this paper explores segments of the U.S. population that resist cash’s alleged decline and continue to carry cash.
2014 Research
Trends in Retail Cash Automation: A Market Overview of Retail Cash Handling Technologies
Until recently, cash handling has been largely a manual and labor-intensive process. However, this has begun to change with new devices that automate certain back office cash handling functions, such as cash dispensers, recyclers, and smart-safes. Because cash usage remains strong, merchants, banks, and armored carriers are exploring ways to take advantage of these new technologies to automate their cash handling functions. This FedNotes paper provides an overview of cash handling in the financial and merchant environments, along with how these new devices are being used.
Cash Continues to Play a Key Role in Consumer Spending: Evidence from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice
It’s commonplace these days to predict the demise of cash. However, evidence from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice (DCPC) suggests that consumers choose to use cash more frequently than any other payment instrument, including debit or credit cards. Cash plays a dominant role for small-value transactions, is the leading payment instrument for many types of purchases, and stands as the key alternative when other options are not available. Using the DCPC data, this FedNotes paper explores where, how, and why U.S. consumers use various payment options and highlights the key and enduring roles cash continues to play in consumer transactions.
Consumer Preferences and the Use of Cash: Evidence from the Diary of Consumer Payments Choice – Working Paper
With the increase in electronic payments, it has been difficult to determine how personal preferences impact the demand for cash as a payment instrument. By analyzing data on demographics and stated payment preferences, this FedNotes paper provides evidence on the determinants of cash usage for small value payments, and particularly how consumers’ stated payment instrument preference and the amount of the purchase affect their propensity to use cash.
2013 Research
Maintaining a Robust and Efficient Cash System in a Changing Landscape
The role of paper currency in the U.S. economy is changing. While the share of payments made with cash appears to be falling, cash continues to be used widely and plays an important function as a store of value, domestically and internationally. Cash also serves an enduring role in natural or other disasters when other payment systems may not be available. These factors suggest that cash will continue to be an essential and significant part of the payment and financial system for the foreseeable future.
2013 Federal Reserve Payments Study
The 2013 Federal Reserve Payments Study is the fifth of a series of triennial studies conducted by the Federal Reserve System to comprehensively estimate and study aggregate trends in noncash payments in the United States. This study reports the total number and value of all noncash payments estimated to have been made in 2012 by consumers and businesses, including for-profit and nonprofit enterprises, and federal, state, and local government agencies. These payments included those initiated from accounts domiciled in the United States and typically involved the use of debit, prepaid and credit cards, automated clearinghouse (ACH) or checks. The 2013 Study marks an expanded effort to survey and estimate additional activities related to payment volumes that may help to better understand payments system trends.
Read the announcement (PDF) of this important study or take a moment to review the findings from our research listed below:
- 2013 Federal Reserve Payments Study – Combined Exhibits (Summary and Detailed Overview) (PDF)
- 2013 Federal Reserve Payments Study - Detailed Report (PDF)
- 2013 Federal Reserve Payment Study Survey Instruments (PDF)
- 2013 Federal Reserve Payments Study - Summary Report (PDF)
Note: The 2013 Federal Reserve Payments Study Summary Report released on December 19, 2013, has been updated as of July 24, 2014, to reflect revised estimates.
2010 Research
2010 Federal Reserve Payments Study
The 2010 Federal Reserve Payments Study is the fourth of a series of triennial studies conducted by the Federal Reserve System to comprehensively estimate and study aggregate trends in noncash payments in the United States. This study estimates the total number and value of payments that were made in 2009 by check, debit card, credit card, automated clearinghouse (ACH), and prepaid card from accounts domiciled in the United States. The study also estimates the number and value of ATM withdrawals.
Read the announcements (PDF) of this important study or take a moment to review the findings from our research listed below:
- FedFocus Payments Study Supplement (PDF)
- 2010 Federal Reserve Payments Study - Detailed Data (PDF)
- 2010 Federal Reserve Payments Study - Summary Report (PDF)
Note: The 2010 Federal Reserve Payments Study Summary Report released on December 8, 2010, has been updated as of April 5, 2011, to reflect revised estimates.
2007 Research
2007 Federal Reserve Payments Study
The 2007 Federal Reserve Payments Study is part of an ongoing effort by the Federal Reserve System to measure and analyze trends in noncash payments in the United States. It consists of three individual studies: the Check Sample Study (2007 CS study), the Depository Institutions Payments Study (2007 DI study), and the Electronic Payments Study (2007 EP study).
Read the announcements (PDF) of this important study or take a moment to review the findings from our research listed below:
- Check Sample Study - Detailed Report (PDF)
- Depository Institutions Payments Study - Detailed Report (PDF)
- Electronic Payments Study - Detailed Report (PDF)
- 2007 Federal Reserve Payments Study - Summary Report (PDF)
Note: The summary report references the DI and EP studies only. Estimates in the DI study detailed report may differ from those in the summary report or EP study detailed report. The differences are due to differences in the reference periods, methodologies, or, in some cases, minor revisions to preliminary estimates.
May 2008 Revision: Exhibit 4: Response Rate per Stratum, page 26, has been replaced.
2007 Federal Reserve Study Shows That More Than Two-Thirds of Noncash Payments Are Now Electronic
Read the announcement (PDF) of this important study or take a moment to review the summary findings from our Retail Payments Research listed below:
2007 Federal Reserve Payments Study - Summary Report (PDF)
2006 Research
Opportunities for Growth in Wire Payments
The Federal Reserve Banks and The Clearing House conducted a joint research study entitled "Business to Business Wire Transfer Payments: Customer Preferences and Opportunities for Financial Institutions". The study offers an in-depth view of the issues facing organizations that routinely make wire transfer payments and focuses on the motivations driving payment decisions as well as potential opportunities for achieving growth in wire payments.
For more information, please see the study findings (PDF).
2001 - 2004 Research
2004 Federal Reserve Studies Confirm Electronic Payments Exceed Check Payments for the First Time
Retail Services leads the way in the transition from the current paper-based U.S. retail payment system toward a predominantly electronic system.
Read the announcement of this important study (PDF) or take a moment to review the detailed findings from our Retail Payments Research listed below:
2002 Community Bank Study
The primary purpose of this study is to examine the business strategies that community banks are undertaking to remain viable in a changing banking environment, identify what community banks require from the payments mechanism to survive in this environment, and suggest how the Federal Reserve might contribute to meeting those needs.
For more information, please see the study findings (PDF).